King Tide February 28 - March 1, 2014

These photographs, taken during the February 2014, King Tide along the Santa Barbara coastline by photographer/pilot Bill Dewey, show the potential future of Santa Barbara due to Seal Level Rise. HTO has made detailed presentations to local agencies about the need to start now instead of “wait and see” in regards to more frequent (and higher) coastal flooding.

The first image shows high tide for Sandyland & Sand Point, where septic systems had been removed just in time. As part of the South Coast Beach Communities Septic-to-Sewer project, these communities were already septic-system-free at the time of this King Tide on February 9, 2014. What a relief!

The ferocious storm that rolled on a high tide into the Santa Barbara coastline on February 28 – March 1, 2014 did a lot of damage as well as bring in water to our marshes, Santa Barbara Harbor parking lot, and halfway up one driveway of a Montecito beachfront home, where a permanent “Tsunami Zone” sign was installed at the foot of a public trail next to the driveway. The Goleta Slough backed up to the point where it had to be opened by backhoe so that it wouldn’t flood the Santa Barbara Airport.